


Anything and Everything

by buzzbuzz34



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Dogs, Friends to Lovers, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-16
Packaged: 2020-05-07 09:47:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19206895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buzzbuzz34/pseuds/buzzbuzz34
Summary: Set during Season 1, Martin accidentally adopts a dog despite living at the Archives and being unable to keep the dog there with him.  As such, he enlists the help of Jon to give the dog a home and, while spending more time together for the sake of the stubborn pup, Jon realizes that Martin isn't quite so bad after all.





	1. Look What I Found!

What the hell was that noise?  Having Martin living in the Archives made it so much more difficult to get things done, between his habit of talking to himself and the enjoyment he seemed to receive when interrupting Jon in the midst of reading a statement.  Not to mention his proclivity for walking around without trousers.  Jon had almost grown accustomed to these nuances, but this was a different, unexpected noise. 

“Jon!  Jon, look what I found!”

Reluctantly, Jon spun around to see Martin, having burst unceremoniously into his room, with a scruffy brown dog in his arms. 

“It’s a dog.”

“I know it’s a dog, but look at him!  I found him tied up outside this café I like to go to for lunch, it’s one of the only places I go now that I’m living here to avoid the worms in my apartment and-”

Jon raised his eyebrow, and Martin evidently took the hint to focus down his rambling. 

“Anyway, this poor little guy was tied up outside!  There was a note on his collar that said, well, here.”  Martin handed over the crumpled note. 

Jon looked over the hasty scrawl. 

_I’m so sorry, Oscar, but I can’t take care of you anymore.  You deserve a better life than I can give you right now.  If someone finds this dog, please take care of him.  He’s a good dog and he will never let you down.  Please love him as much as I wish I could._

“How touching.”

“So, I decided, who better to take care of Oscar here, than me?”

“Elias is not going to let you keep a dog in the Archives.”

Martin’s face fell, and, for a moment, Jon felt a pang of regret.  Despite his idiosyncrasies, Martin _was_ having a tough time of it all.  Trapped in his apartment and then forced to live in a soundproof box at his workplace due to flesh-eating worms definitely put him under a significant amount of stress.  But that didn’t mean Elias would allow an animal inside his Archives.  And, truthfully, Jon couldn’t disagree with that sentiment.  Even with the way the dog licked Martin’s face, sending the man into a volley of giggles. 

“Listen, listen, you’re right.  You’re right,” Martin said, clearly hatching some harebrained scheme.  “Elias will not let me keep Oscar here even though he would be an excellent mascot and would raise everyone’s morale.  And he’d probably eat some of the worms that managed to get inside.  But, since I can’t keep him here and, well, it’s not as if I have a flat to go back to, would you take care of him?”

“What!?”

“Just until Prentiss is taken care of, of course!  Until I can move back home.  Please, Jon, it would mean a lot.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Please.”

Jon let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his temples.  He did not have time to take care of a dog.  He did not _want_ a dog. 

But he also couldn’t say no to the duo of puppy eyes staring back at him, Oscar and Martin staring at him with such hope in perfect synchronicity. 

“Fine.  But only until Prentiss is taken care of and you get your flat back.  And you will have to pay for food.  And take him for walks.  And if he ever gets out of hand, I will take him to a shelter.”

Martin seemed to tune out the finer details and beamed from ear to ear.  “Thanks, Jon!  You’re the best, you know that?  We can work out the scheduling later, right now, I’m going to go to the park with Oscar!”

“What about the follow up for Statement 10-”

But it was too late.  Martin was already gone, the door shut soundly behind him. 

This time, when Jon sighed, the corners of his mouth slanted upwards and the faintest breathy chuckle echoed in his throat.  This was going to be interesting.


	2. Again and Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon tags along while Martin takes his new dog, Oscar, to the park after another long day in the Archives.

“Thanks again for taking care of Oscar, Jon.  I really appreciate it.” 

Martin and Jon walked side by side through the park as Oscar the dog tugged on his leash, practically causing Martin to lose his footing. 

“It’s fine.  At least his last owner had the dignity to train him well before being forced to give him up.”

“Still.  I… don’t know how to thank you enough.”

Jon chuckled.  “You can start by picking up after your dog.”  He gestured to where Oscar had left a rather large mark on the grassy passage. 

“Oh, oh, dear me.”  Martin rushed off to take care of the waste, before taking off Oscar’s leash to play catch.  Watching them, Jon wasn’t sure which of them enjoyed the back and forth more, the man or his dog. 

All things considered, Oscar was welcome company most nights when Jon came home from another day of tedium at the Archives.  Martin kept up his end of the bargain, providing all of Oscar’s food and toys and taking him for walks each day.  Jon wasn’t entirely sure when he’d started joining him.  Or if he was going along for Oscar’s company, or Martin’s. 

Hm.  Perhaps it was he that enjoyed the back and forth the most, he thought to himself, as he watched Martin toss a frisbee, laughing and grinning, and Oscar toppled over himself to appease his human counterpart. 

That was a thought for another time. 

“Don’t you want to give it a try?”  Martin called to Jon, holding out the frisbee to where he sat on the bench. 

“Oh, no, I’m fine.  Thanks.”

“C’mon.”

Those damn puppy dog eyes.  Jon didn’t even consciously make the decision to stand up and accept the saucer, he was just already there beside Martin and ready to throw to an energetic Oscar. 

After a few volleys, Jon admitted, “Alright, this is actually kind of fun.”

“I told you!  And you said you didn’t like animals.”

“I don’t.  Mostly.”

Before Martin could rebuke the statement, Oscar came running back over with the frisbee, eagerly leaping up onto Jon and knocking him to the ground.  He dropped the toy to the side and proceeded to lick Jon’s face up and down while Martin looked on and laughed. 

“And this-” Jon cried between puppy kisses “-is why I don’t like animals.”

“Aww, don’t be such a spoilsport.  It means he likes you!”

Jon extracted himself out from under Oscar, petting his ears and staring into his eyes.  “Bad dog.  Don’t tackle the person giving you shelter, it’s very rude.”

In response, Oscar licked Jon’s nose one last time. 

Oscar trotted off, satisfied, and left Martin to help Jon up from the ground. 

“It’s probably about time to be heading on home, huh,” Martin said somberly, gathering up the discarded frisbee and leash. 

“I’m sorry, Martin.”

“Oh, it’s alright.  Living in the Archives could be worse.  I suppose.  And I get to hang out with you every day after work.  And the dog, of course.  But, I… having you here is good too?  Very, very good, but, uh… I’m going to go get Oscar and get the leash on and stop talking before I say anything else…”

Jon’s eyebrows skyrocketed upwards and his cheeks grew warm.  Perhaps it was just a bad reaction to copious amounts of dog saliva.  Obviously, that was what it was.  Obviously. 

“Alright, we’re all set,” Martin said, Oscar trotting along behind him and yawning.  He’d been all tuckered out with fetch and tackle-the-Archivist.  They headed back the short few blocks to Jon’s flat. 

“You know, Martin, if you’d like, you’re welcome to stay for dinner.  Spend some more time with Oscar and avoid going back to the Archives a bit longer.”

“Are you sure?  I don’t want to impose on you more than I already have by making you take care of a dog I wanted in the first place.”

“It’s alright.  Besides, having company will make sure I eat something other than ramen for dinner again.  Though I can’t vouch for the quality of my cooking.”

Martin grinned.  “I’d love to.  Thank you again, Jon.”

“Come on.” 

Jon led the way to his flat and let in his two dinner guests.  The decision to let Martin come for dinner had happened in a millisecond, and now Jon was wondering just what he’d gotten himself into.  Again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed! The next chapter will be up tomorrow. Check out more of my writing at kellanswritingblog.tumblr.com! <3


	3. You Have to Break a Few Eggs...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Martin joins Jon and Oscar the dog for dinner at Jon's flat.

“I’m afraid I’m not entirely sure what I have for dinner,” Jon admitted.  “Like I said, I’ve kind of been living off of ramen and other easily microwaveable meals.”

“Do you even eat lunch?  I almost never see you eating at the Archives.”

Jon shrugged as he began to rummage in his fridge for something halfway respectable for company.  “I tend to forget about food until my stomach is screaming at me for sustenance.  What with all the statements I have to record, it doesn’t seem particularly important.”

“That’s not exactly healthy.”

“I know,” Jon admitted.  But a diet of coffee and noodles did the trick, and that was all that mattered. 

A few moments later, after tossing around the few ingredients in his fridge and cabinets, Jon grumbled, “Well, it looks like we have… tater tots, angel hair pasta, eggs, and a smattering of vegetables that are about to go bad.”  Between excessively long workdays and spending upwards of an hour with Oscar and Martin every afternoon, he hadn’t had time to do all the cooking he’d planned out during one optimistic grocery shopping trip.

“I make a mean omelette,” Martin suggested and stepped confidently forward.

“Then I, despite my best judgment, hand over control of my kitchen to you.”

“You will not be disappointed.”

Jon took to preparing Oscar’s dinner while Martin busied himself in the kitchen.  Though omelettes weren’t the most complicated of meals, he worked with well-practiced hands and an air of self-assurance Jon hadn’t seen in Martin before. 

“What kind of wine do you have with eggs?”  Jon poked his head out from a cabinet that he could barely see into while standing on tip-toes. 

“I don’t think you have wine with eggs.  I think you have a screwdriver or a bloody Mary or a mimosa or some other drink that exists only as an excuse to have alcohol in the morning.”

“Well, I am lacking the ingredients to all of those drinks, so: red or white.”

“White.”

“Sounds good to me.”  Jon pulled down a bottle of wine he’d almost forgotten about and popped it open while Martin put the finishing touches on their extravagant dinner. 

They sat down at the small table Jon quickly cleared of the books and newspaper clippings that covered the entire surface.  He couldn’t remember the last time he’d actually eaten at it.  

“This is…”

“Oh no, I’m sorry.  I knew I cooked it too long and the tomato was a little bit too overripe, and-”

“No, no, it’s fantastic.  Thank you, Martin.  This is the best meal I’ve had in a long time.”

“The wine actually goes really well with it too.”

“It does, doesn’t it?”

“Who would have guessed?”

They both smiled and continued to dig into their unusual dinner.  Oscar sat between Jon and Martin, looking for any scraps that might fall to the floor.  Or, in Martin’s case, be placed on a special plate for the dog because he had little willpower to resist the quiet whimpers that Oscar uttered. 

Soon enough, the omelettes were gone, but another glass of wine was poured, and neither man nor dog heard the thunderstorm outside.  That is, until Martin looked at the time.

“Oh my goodness, I should be getting out of your hair.  I didn’t realize how late it had gotten.”  He stood and grabbed his jacket just as a shock of lightning illuminated the cityscape outside the window.  His shoulders slumped as he mumbled something about not having an umbrella. 

Between a few glasses of wine and a couple hours of conversation that showed Martin wasn’t quite as terrible as Jon had originally assumed, the solution was obvious. 

“Just take your jacket off, Martin.  I have extra blankets and pillows and a rather comfortable couch, if I do say so myself.  And a dog that I’m sure will be happy to keep you warm by laying directly on your chest until you have trouble breathing.”

“Oh, no, I couldn’t, I-”

But Jon was already emerging from a closet with a stack of blankets. 

“Are you sure?”  Martin asked as Jon started to make up an impromptu bed. 

“If you keep asking me that, then I might _not_ be so sure, but for now, yes.”

“I haven’t got any pajamas or anything with me, though.”

“You walk around without trousers at the Archive enough already; it’s not going to shock me much if you do the same here.” 

Martin smiled bashfully, a blush creeping into his cheeks.  “Yeah, sorry about that.  Like I said, I just forget sometimes…”

“Well, letting you stay the night on my couch is a small consolation for you having to live there.  Besides, and I don’t know if this is the wine talking, but… you are much better company than I would have given you credit for.”  Jon paused, then made to turn away and prepare to go to sleep himself.  “Now, goodnight, Martin.”

“Goodnight, Jon.  And… thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Please feel free to hit up kellanswritingblog.tumblr.com for more of my writing. <3


	4. Sweet Dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Martin is spending the night at Jon's flat, but Oscar the dog isn't going to let the time pass without the two realizing their feelings for each other.

Midway through brushing his teeth, Jon heard a yelp and immediately started to regret this whole decision. 

“What have you done?”  He asked, gesticulating to Martin with his toothbrush.

“Oscar won’t let me lay down!” 

Stretched across the couch, Oscar sat proudly, and growled at Martin whenever he got too close.

“Well, you’re going to have to get him to move, unless you want to head out into the monsoon that decided to visit London this evening.”

“I know, I know.”  Martin attempted to grab at Oscar’s collar to pull him off the couch, to little avail.  “C’mon, get off of there, you ridiculous fuzz.”

Jon had finished up and headed toward his room, casting another glance at Martin unsuccessfully removing the dog from the couch, when, suddenly, Oscar used Martin’s grip on his collar to drag him toward the bedroom door.  Martin trundled along behind him and tried to drag him back.  That effort proved as futile as the rest. 

“Absolutely not,” Jon said as he noticed both Martin and Oscar looking at him expectantly. 

Oscar whined and looped around behind Martin to headbutt him forward until he stumbled into Jon.  Jon staggered haphazardly backwards, but he and Martin managed to right themselves by hanging onto each other. 

“Did you somehow train him to do this?”  Jon asked, not realizing that his hands were still grasping Martin’s. 

“Do what?”

“Convince me to let you sleep in my bed because he wouldn’t relinquish control of the couch.”

“How would I possibly have trained him to do that?”

“I don’t know, it just… seems the most likely reasoning.”

“Really?”  Martin chuckled.  “Does it?”

“Alright, no, it’s not very likely, is it?”  Jon was smiling too.  Then he sighed.  “Fine.  Come on, then.” 

He rearranged the pillows on his bed to one side so that Martin would have ample space on the other.  Oscar hopped up in the middle, panting happily, the equivalent of a doggy smirk on his face. 

“Sorry about this,” Martin said meekly as he crawled under the covers beside Jon. 

“Let’s just… go to sleep and… and…”

In the dim light cast in from the window, Jon looked over at Martin and, for a moment, forgot everything.  He hadn’t let down his guard like this in ages.  And for _Martin_.  But as the hazy light flooded over his features, Jon couldn’t help but smile. 

“I still don’t know how to thank you for all of this,” Martin mumbled.  “Though I am considering getting you one of those boxes where they send you the ingredients for dinner every day so that you can just prepare them quickly.  Seems like a healthier alternative than your current diet.”

Jon chuckled, then leaned over and pressed a kiss to Martin’s cheek.  “Make me another omelette for breakfast and we’ll call it even, alright?”

A few squeaks from Martin made it clear that he was too baffled by Jon’s show of affection to process words. 

“I… yeah… okay… absolutely…”

Jon chuckled.  “Goodnight, Martin.”

In response, Martin rolled toward him, carefully scooched closer, and gently put a hand on Jon’s cheek, before leaning in to give him a proper kiss.  He moved slowly, unsurely, and the way their lips met was hesitant on both sides. 

“I’m sorry,” Martin said hastily, while Jon echoed the sentiment.

“No, no, I’m sorry, I…”

Lost among their protestations, they both paused and laughed. 

“We’re going to have to practice that some more, aren’t we,” Jon suggested through a smile. 

“I don’t want to… I’m not trying to…”

“You’re not.” 

With Jon’s reassurance, Martin leaned in for another kiss, surer this time.  Jon still hesitated, careful and unassuming, realizing how wrong he’d been this whole time about Martin and washing away every misgiving in the meeting of their lips, until it felt as natural as anything to be lying beside him and kissing him goodnight. 

A crack of thunder broke them apart and Oscar sidled up between them with a scared whimper. 

“This beats the Archives any day,” Martin whispered.

“I’m glad I’ve surpassed the lowest bar of expectations in existence.”

Martin chuckled.  “Please.  This is better than… anything.  Anything and everything.”

Grateful for the darkness that hopefully hid the way he grinned, Jon said, “Goodnight, Martin.  Goodnight, Oscar.  Sleep well.”

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep.  This is… wow.”

“Don’t make me kick you out and back to the couch.  The doghouse, as it were,” Jon teased.

“Alright, alright.  Goodnight, Jon.  Sweet dreams.”

“You too.”

“My dream is right here, though.”

“I didn’t know it before, but… mine too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Check out more of my writing at kellanswritingblog.tumblr.com or check out my personal blog with more tma stuff at moirasberet.tumblr.com. I'll be posting more Magnus Archives content shortly, so keep an eye out! (No pun intended)  
> Kellan <3

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Please leave kudos or a comment, or find more of my writing at kellanswritingblog.tumblr.com! This is my first time writing this pairing or any tma fic, so I hope it's alright. There are three more chapters of increasing fluff (and not just on the part of Oscar the dog), so stick around for more! Thanks again!  
> Kellan <3


End file.
